Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-12-29
OCCULT TELEGRAPHY" EXPOSED.
Two WeEttrn Union Men Attend a Mani
fes:aticn and Break Up tho Meeting.
New York Trihnnn

New York Tribune.
For some weeks spiritualistic circles
here and elsewhere have been vibrating
with excitement over q new and startling
discovery in the unknown realm that, il
was whispered, had been msde by DR.. L.
w. Sapp, physician and q spir;ualist Of
Cleveland. Investigation proved these
reports to be well founded.
With becoming modesty the doctor
claimed that after some years. patient Ia
Dor ne had succeeded in establishing
nothing less than .telegraphic communi-
cation with disembodied spirits, and SO
perfectly did The system VIC that he
could obtain messages at any time from
the other world, regardless CT storms,
strikes, "crossed lines" or any other
earthly impeachment. OF course no pent-
up Cleveland could long confine
such spiritualistic-electrical genius
as this, and hence it was
only natural that DR.. Sapp should be in
vited here to give practical Illustration
of his great discovery, upon which, he had
bestowed the significant name OF Occult
Telegrephy.' He accepted the invitation,
and like the truly great Of all ages, came
here unheralded. It was arranged that
he should give al exhibition in Adelohi
hall On recent Sunday afternoon. The
simple announcement of the fact was
made under the head of religious notices
in q morning paper and read as fellows:
A DELPHI HaLL-Corner Seventh avenue
IA and Fifty second street. Meeting for
srfrirual Manifestations, ? 80 p. m. Tests by
Mrs. A. Wells and Frank T. Ripley. DR.. L.
W. Sapp of Cleveland, Ohio, viii give 8 prac-
tiPnl illustration of HtDrcuIt TpIapranhv Il
mission 20 cents.
CATCHING THE EYE OF AN INQUIsITIyE
MAN.
This was placed sway down in an OBJ
scure corner Of the sheet, and few out
siders noticed it. The peculiar phrase,
"occnlt telegraphy," however, caught
the eye OF George A. Mudgett, wide
awake veteran telegraph operator,
who is employed in the Western
Unions cable Office in Broad
street. Mudgett ig never happy IN
less he is investigating something new in
electrical science. He is Yankee nduis-
itiveness personifed in regard to all euch
matters. His friend and fellow operator,
William S. Price, is much the same, and
hence, IS q matter Of course, they went
to see DR.. Sapp's discovery together. On
arriving at the hall they found about 500
people assembled, eagerly awaitingl the
Olio mans exhibition. 1t was preceded
by some tests snd~ manipulations,
with Mrs: Wells and Frank Ripley
as mediums. They were Of the ususl
character and the audience witnessed
them with Impotence. Finally Chairman
Newton introduced DR.. Sapp, who was
warmly received. The great discovereT
&c mi % cS b,flt nd
rather good-loohiug. There was moth
ing, however, striking in his appearance
or in his remarks. Telegraphy, he said
was rather out of his line. He was in
fact only an amateur in the businesss but
despite this the spirits would send him al
sorts CT Information, even going so far as
to prescribe for his patients when re-
quested to do SO.
| Then he went on to say that the spirits
| did not communicate with him through
the Morse code of signals, but had prom
ised to do SO at the end of three months
Snd had directed him to have then 6
practical telegraph operator to take dowy
whist they said. In the meantime they
Wenld talk to him through
private code which he understood
and would translate to the audience
His apparatus, which stood on the plat.
form, consisted of an ordinary telegraph
ic table with Calsud battery. In piacs
Of the ordinary wooden sounding boarG
he used one side of, or rather one Leaf, o
q mahogany framed folding school slate
The other leaf covered the trRnsnitter
| which consisted of the regular Morse key
snd rubber lever In plsce Of the ordin
ery metal one. The rubber lever, be ex
planned, suited the spirits better. WheT
he brought the upper leaf Of the slate
down toward the transmitter, it was
| SO adjusted that while the circuit was col
closed, 1t looked as though this could be
done easily by either slight pressure or
the slate OF an impefceptlble jar Of the